On October 8, 2021, a tragic double murder occurred in Charleston, West Virginia, resulting in the deaths of Kytiana Belcher, 22, and Bria White, 26. The two women, who were in a relationship, were found shot to death in separate locations on Charleston's West Side.
The first body discovered was that of Bria White, found around 1:30 a.m. in the 300 block of Hunt Avenue. Police responded to the area after receiving complaints about gunshots.
White had suffered numerous gunshot wounds, and investigators found 12 9mm fired cartridge cases at the scene.
Following the discovery of White's body, detectives began searching for Kytiana Belcher, knowing that the two women were in a relationship. However, they were initially unable to locate her. It was not until just before 8 a.m. that a neighbor reported finding another body in the 1000 block of Grant Street. This body was later identified as Kytiana Belcher, who had been shot once in the neck.
The investigation led police to identify Marquis Goodman, a 24-year-old man from Detroit, as the primary suspect. Goodman was developed as a suspect early in the investigation due to several key pieces of evidence. A video posted to Belcher's Snapchat account around 1:17 a.m. on the morning of the shootings showed a Black man wearing a blue zip-up jacket with white stripes on the sleeves, black shorts, and a Michael Myers costume mask. This man was seen walking with Bria White in the video, which was posted approximately 13 minutes before the police received the shots fired call.
Further evidence included surveillance footage showing a man matching Goodman's description running from the area where Belcher was found shot. The footage captured the man removing several articles of clothing and hiding an item near a set of steps. Detectives later found a 9mm Glock in the same yard where the man was seen hiding something. Additional witnesses reported seeing the suspect hiding in a field and throwing an unknown item into a dump trailer near Main and Marion streets. In the dump trailer, police found a Michael Myers mask, which was a crucial piece of evidence linking Goodman to the crime.
Goodman was captured in Detroit six days after the shootings and was extradited back to West Virginia. During an interview with detectives after his arrest, Goodman confessed to killing both women. He claimed that Bria White had set him up to be robbed, which led him to kill her. After shooting White, Goodman stated that Kytiana Belcher took off running and he followed her, killing her because she was a witness.
Goodman's attorney argued that his client was acting in self-defense, claiming that Goodman was set up and robbed by the two women and their male friends, who had given directives to kill him. However, this defense did not sway the court, and Goodman was ultimately charged with two counts of second-degree murder.
In February 2024, Marquis Goodman pleaded guilty to the two counts of second-degree murder. He was subsequently sentenced to 80 years in prison, serving two consecutive 40-year terms for the murders of Kytiana Belcher and Bria White. The sentencing hearing was emotionally charged, with the victim's families expressing their grief and outrage, and the judge handing down the maximum sentence for the crimes.
Goodman's motive, as described to detectives, was somewhat unclear, but he stated that he did what he had to do in the situation. The court and the families of the victims saw his actions as heinous and devoid of any justification, leading to the severe sentence.
